Electronic book written and designed by Warren Lehrer.
Original Soundtrack by Andrew Griffin. Programmed by Artemio Morales.
ISBN: 979-8-9897802-1-1. Published by EarSay in collaboration with AltSalt. June 1, 2024.
Made for iPad, iPhone, and Mac laptop or desktop computers (System 12 above).
Available through the (Apple) App Store.
A new kind of ebook, Riveted in the Word is inspired by the true story of a woman’s hard-fought battle to regain language after a devastating stroke. Written and designed by Warren Lehrer, this multimedia book app places the reader inside the mind of a retired history professor as she recalls her journey with Broca Aphasia. The custom interface toggles between columns of text that readers navigate at their own pace, and animated sections that evoke gaps between perceptions (thoughts, memories, desires) and the words needed to communicate. This deeply moving story about overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles is told in a dynamic new way, with kinetic typography and an original soundtrack by composer, multi-instrumentalist Andrew Griffin. Programmed by web/electronic literature developer Artemio Morales at AltSalt, this e-edition of Riveted in the Word, is made for iPad, iPhone, and Mac computers (System 12 and above).
In the late 1990s, Lehrer conducted a series of interviews as research for interior narratives and short stories about people who have taken great leaps in their lives. One of the people he interviewed was Willie Rose Lee, an author and professor of American History, who 20 years earlier, at the age of 51, suffered a massive stroke. Riveted in the Word is published in her memory. The fictionalized protagonist in Riveted in the Word, Norah Hanson, PhD, wakes to the sound of birds singing outside her window, hopeful for the day ahead. The reader witnesses her delightful sense of humor, determined spirit, and seemingly fragmented-but-intelligible thoughts as they shift from present to past, and toward her upcoming lecture at Cornell University—a milestone breakthrough scheduled for later that day. She meditates on: the daily struggle to find the right words; the grace of her late husband who never gave up hope; the generosity of friends who take her out on jaunts; miracles like VELCRO®, rehabilitation, life-saving doctors and therapists; and her disdain for the doctors who told her she’d never speak again. She sees the very yellow chicken consommé she was eating the night the stroke ruptured the hemispheres of her universe; the red dot between her eyes that still comes and goes throughout the day; a new book she’s envisioning.
EarSay is publishing Riveted in the Word simultaneously with Jericho’s Daughter, Lehrer’s anti-war, feminist reimagining of the biblical tale of Rahab, a powerful and physical book, printed in four colors, with images by Sharon Horvath, bound in a dos-à-dos binding. Both publications are based on stories written by Lehrer, create haptic, sensuous, and empathic reading experiences, and use bifurcated structures that reflect lives that have been ripped apart and begun anew.
A percentage of the proceeds from Riveted in the Word will go to the American Stroke Association.
Buy the Book!
Apple App Store. $4.99
sample frames and video clips
